Reward availability to NY

I’m planning a family trip to NY and DC next year (Oct/Nov) for 5.
I’ve got loads of miles so looking to get 5Gs over the next few months.
Plenty of availability at the moment, planning NYC out and IAD back.
IAD return route seems wide open but at the moment the only NYC flight with more than 2 Gs is the 8pm flight which is a bit late.
There are so many flights a day now to NY. The 2pm one seems the best.
Which are the most popular times? Assume these will be the hardest to get Gs on?
Was thinking of getting 2 Gs at the moment and trying to pick up others later?
Any advice appreciated.
Thanks

If you want 5 Gs then your options really are limited. If VS can fill a flight up with cash passengers then they will release fewer reward seats on that flight.

Part of the bargain of reward seats is that they are often on the less desirable flight times so you need to balance availability against flight times.

Yes you could nab the 2 Gs currently available on your desired flight but you run the (high) risk of VS not releasing any more on that flight and you then have to split your party across multiple flights. Can you cope with that and various parts of your party being spread across various flights and the complications that causes.

I’m happy to pay for a couple of revenue fares nearer the time, perhaps in the next sale.
If I can get 2Gs now and another in due course that’s fine.
I guess the question was which flight times are likely to be the easiest to get Gs but you’ve answered it so thanks. Ironically IAD has lots more availability than NY (I got 4Gs last Easter) - guess is a popular revenue route.